COURSE DETAIL

Science & Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science

Top chefs and Harvard researchers explore how everyday cooking and haute cuisine can illuminate basic principles in physics and engineering, and vice versa.

ABOUT THIS COURSE

During each week of the course, you will watch as chefs reveal the secrets behind some of their most famous culinary creations — often right in their own restaurants. Inspired by such cooking mastery, the Harvard team will then explain, in simple and sophisticated ways, the science behind the recipe.

Topics will include: soft matter materials, such as emulsions, illustrated by aioli; elasticity, exemplified by the done-ness of a steak; and diffusion, revealed by the phenomenon of spherification, the culinary technique pioneered by Ferran Adrià.

To help you make the link between cooking and science, an “equation of the week” will capture the core scientific concept being explored. You will also have the opportunity to be an experimental scientist in your very own laboratory — your kitchen. By following along with the engaging recipe of the week, taking measurements, and making observations, you will learn to think both like a cook and a scientist. The lab is also one of the most unique components of this course — after all, in what other science course do you get to eat your lab?

COURSE STAFF

Michael Brenner

Michael Brenner is the Glover Professor of Applied Mathematics and Applied Physics, and Harvard College Professor at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. He developed the popular Harvard class, "Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to the Science of Soft Matter," with his colleague David Weitz and chef Ferran Adrià. His research uses mathematics to examine a wide variety of problems in science and engineering, ranging from understanding the shapes of bird beaks, whale flippers and fungal spores, to finding the principles for designing materials that can assemble themselves, to answering ordinary questions about daily life, such as why a droplet of fluid splashes when it collides with a solid surface.

David Weitz

David Weitz is a Professor of Physics and Applied Physics, at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Department of Physics. He developed the popular Harvard class, "Science and Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to the Science of Soft Matter," with his colleague Michael Brenner and chef Ferran Adrià. His research group studies the science of soft matter materials as well as biophysics and biotechnology.

Pia Sörensen

Pia Sörensen is Preceptor of Science and Cooking at the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University, and the HarvardX Fellow for Science & CookingX. She earned her PhD in Chemical Biology at Harvard University, studying small molecule inhibitors of cell division.

Ferran Adrià

Culinary Advisor: Ferran Adrià was the chef and owner of restaurant elBulli in Roses, Spain, the only restaurant to have been voted number one in the world a record five times by the World’s 50 best restaurant list. He is founder of the elBulli Foundation, a creative initiative intended to keep pushing the limits of culinary invention. His books include: A day at elBulli, Modern Gastronomy A to Z, and other books

Pere Castells

Culinary Advisor: Pere Castells is a chemist, teacher, and former head of the Alícia Foundation’s Scientific Research Department in Barcelona, Spain. He is currently coordinating the research project UB-Bullipèdia with the elBulli Foundation.

Daniel Rosenberg

Science Demo Guru: Daniel Rosenberg of Harvard University is the master mind behind the science demos in the course.

Harold McGee

Culinary Expert: Harold McGee is an expert on the chemistry, technique, and history of food, and will appear regularly, sharing his insights on these topics. He is the author of many books and articles, including the textbook for the course: On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen.

Nathan Myhrvold

Culinary Expert: Nathan Myhrvold is the principal author of the six volume cookbook Modernist Cuisine, as well as the shorter version, Modernist Cuisine at Home. He will be a regular contributor to the course.

Dan Souza

Culinary Expert: Dan Souza is a senior editor at Cook's Illustrated and cast member of the America's Test Kitchentelevision show. Dan developed the test kitchen experiments for The Science of Good Cooking. He will be a regular contributor to the course.

José Andres

Chef: José Andres is the founder of ThinkFood Group and chef and owner of several restaurants including Minibar, Jaleo and The Bazaar. His books include Made in Spain: Spanish Dishes for the American Kitchen and Tapas: A Taste of Spain in America.

Dave Arnold

Chef: Dave Arnold is chef and owner of the bar Booker and Dax in New York City. He is also the founder of the Museum of Food and Drink and writes on Culinary Technology developments in the blog Cooking Issues.

Joanne Chang

Chef: Joanne Chang is chef and owner of Flour Bakery andMyers + Chang in Boston, MA. She is the author of two books: Flour: Spectacular recipes from Boston’s Flour bakery + Café and Flour, Too: Indispensable Recipes for the Cafés Most Loved Sweets and Savories.

David Chang

Chef: David Chang is chef and owner of the Momofuku restaurant group, including the two Michelin starred Momfuku Ko in New York City. He is the author of Momofuku cookbook, Milk Bar Cookbook and other books, and also publishes the quarterly journal Lucky Peach Magazine.

Wylie Dufresne

Chef: Wylie Dufresne is chef and owner of the Michelin starred restaurant wd-50 and the gastropub Alder in New York City.

Nandu Jubany

Chef: Nandu Jubany is chef and owner of the Michelin starred restaurant Can Jubany in Vic, Spain.

Joan Roca

Chef: Joan Roca is chef and owner of restaurant El Celler de Can Roca, outside Girona, Spain. The restaurant, run in collaboration with his two brothers, Josep and Jordi Roca, was recently voted best restaurant in the world by theWorld’s 50 best restaurant list and has three Michelin stars. Books include Sous-Vide Cuisine and El Celler de Can Roca.

Enric Rovira

Chef: Enric Rovira, based in Barcelona, is one of Spain’s most celebrated Master Chocolatiers.

Carme Ruscalleda

Chef: Carme Ruscalleda is chef and owner of restaurants Sant Pau in Sant Pol de Mar, Spain, Sant Pau de Tòquio, Japan, and Moments in Barcelona, Spain. The three restaurants have been awarded six Michelin stars combined. She is the author of CR20: 20 Years of the Sant Pau, Carme Ruscalleda’s Mediterranean Cuisine, and severalother books.

Carles Tejedor

Chef: Carles Tejedor is the chef of restaurant Via Veneto in Barcelona, Spain. He is also the founder of Oilab, a virtual space devoted to research and development of culinary oil products.